Harry Potter and the Balance of Power
by pARODY
Summary: The Assault upon Harry Potter begins.. first with the dursleys and then on those who are there to protect him.
1. The First Wave

Chapter 01/??  
  
He stood on the edge of the forest looking upon the sight before him. He had never seen or felt something so dormantly powerful in all the years of his travels. He stepped forward lightly and edged his way in the shadows closer until he could move no closer forward, as though something was holding him back. Closing his eyes he lifted his senses to only work on the sub-natural level. His 6th sense examined the barrier in front of him. He felt his excitement rise as he extended a solitary hand to make contact with the barrier. His hand stopped in mid-air like it was touching glass. All at once a gale blew along the fields in front of him, attacking him from all sides with cold, biting rain. He struggled to find the origin of the barrier. The signature he knew from many years ago, yet within it were close to a thousand other signatures that he could not identify. But just that one major signature told him who made this barrier and what it was made with. Magic so powerful as to deflect all with the intent of doing malice. He knew and understood why he was barred from his destination, the malice he harbored within for having been responsible for so many and having failed and paying the ultimate price.   
  
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Harry Potter watched the sorting of first years into houses with little interest. He was too busy remembering and reliving the best summer break he'd ever had.   
  
  
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eight weeks earlier.....  
  
  
Harry sat dejectedly on the back step of his loathsome surrogate family, The Dursley's, with Uncle Vernon, Aunt Petunia and Harry's cousin Dudley . Aunt Petunia had forbidden him to possess keys to the house, mostly since she felt he wasn't to be trusted around the house without someone to supervise him. Uncle Vernon and Aunt Petunia were out at a country club socializing for Vernon's company. Vernon had somehow secured a backer who would inject enough captial into the company that they would be able to not only continue business like normal but also expand into another location and finally start a research section to work on making faster and stronger drills. Vernon had aspirations of having Dudley take over control of Grunnings, Vernon's drill making company. Alas Dudley was turning out to be more of a black hole for food and information. Harry had felt that Dudley was growing in size so much that The Dudley's would have to widen the front doors to get him inside.   
  
Harry smiled a small inward smile while thinking of how funny Dudley had looked when he had greedily picked up one of the ton-tongue toffee's the weasley twins had dropped on purpose in the sitting room when they collected Harry before the Quidditch World Cup. Dudley's tongue had swelled up so large it almost dislocated his enormous jaw. Harry was brought out of his reverie by the sounds of the front door being unlocked and opened. He stood up and walked around the front of the house and stopped dead in his tracks and ducked hiding amongst the bushes. From his vantage point he could see the street and driveway and most of the front of the house. He could see the Dudley's's walking towards the front door, but not alone. Either side of them were four Death Eaters. Vernon looked all bloodied up and looked very sorry for himself. Dudley had blood dripping from a busted lip and looked very pale. While Petunia was walking almost robotically with a Death Eater with a wand pointing at the back of her head.   
  
"Oh Shit!", Harry thought to himself, "They have the Dursleys. What can I do.. what CAN I do?". Harry was forbidden to use magic outside of the Hogwarts School of Wizardry and Witchcraft. Harry left the bushes and returned to the rear of the house, he then collected his possessions and retrieved his wand from his trunk. Using the wand he reduced all the items to a size he could store in his pocket. He knew his act of un-licensed magic will attract ministry people. He hoped they could help. But his actions of preparing to run were a sign of his faith in the ministry to defend people against Death Eaters. Harry ran to the back fence and was half way over when he realized that he couldn't strand the Dursleys to be tortured and murdered by the evil followers of Lord Voldemort. He climbed back down to the ground and tried to figure out what he could do to save them. He was deep in thought planning what he could do when he was brought back to his senses by a terrifying scream from within the house. He decided the first thing to do would be to set Hedwig loose with a message for Professor Albus Dumbledor and Minister Fudge. After writing a small note listing what has happened, Harry sent Hedwig off to deliver the message. Harry knew the message would get to them too late, but he knew they would want to know what had happened. Harry unlocked the back door with a quick and quiet 'alohomora' spell and snuck inside, closing the door lightly behind him. He practically slithered over the floor to peek around the door jam at the hellish scene partaking in the the TV room. He could see the Dursleys, they were all on their knee's facing away from the Death Eaters. The Death Eaters were dancing around laughing and poking them with their wands. They looked like a team of seekers all trying to catch a snitch. This imagery brought an idea to Harry's head. He thought over it for a few seconds and knew it would do just the trick against the overwhelming odds of numbers and their lack of abiding by the law, considering the only words Harry could understand from the Death Eaters were 'Crucio!'. It sickened Harry to think that someone could use such a forbidden spell on another person, it sickened him further to think that the target would be a Muggle. No muggle could ever know a way of escaping their torment. Harry slid back into the kitchen and looked around him. He found space under the kitchen table to start his preparations.  
  
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Hermione Granger looked out the side of the VW van Mr Weasley had decided to use for their surprise visit to Harry. She turned to Ron Weasley sitting across from her. She giggled at his apparent un-ease at the jerking and swaying motion of the van.   
"I wish dad had managed to work out the bugs in his automobilis charm before he used it on a car bigger than it was designed for.", he said weakly.  
"Oh cheer up Ron, we'll be there soon.", Hermione responded looking up and smiling at Bill Weasley who was navigating for Charlie Weasley who had been forced into the chore of controlling this contraption of magic and steel. Charlie was selected because his day to day job was to train large, powerful dragons into not destroying everything they perceive as a threat. Bill was navigating since he had traveled around most of the middle-east in search of treasure for the Gringott's bank. Bill also was the cheif curse breaker for Gringott's.  
  
They flew over the highway wihch was blocked far back with muggle cars since it seemed there was a large muggle sports match on. Bill turned and looked at Hermione looking miffed about something. "Somethings not right.. " he muttered to himself. "Did you bring your wands with you?", Bill asked the two in the back.   
"Er, why? we aren't allowed to do magic outside of Hogwarts. You should know that.", Hermione stated.  
"I know that, but did you bring them?", Bill asked again.. pressing the question with a bit more urgency this time.  
"I always bring mine.", Ron said.   
"I didn't know if to bring it or not... so i hid it in my robes", Hermione answer sheepishly.  
"Good, because usually when we cross into little whinging I feel the barrier of the protection spell upon Harry's house.", he paused and saw that Charlie was looking at him with a hint of worry in his eyes, "But its gone. I can feel the power of the spell. But its no longer able to hide Harry's house."   
They turned up the street in their invisible VW and drove it past the house they knew as 'Harry's summer torture', but didn't stop infront of Harry's house after seeing four Death Eaters standing guard out front. They continued around the corner parked the Van in a parking lot in the middle of the street. They then fished out their wands and transfigured their robes and wizarding clothes into muggle clothing. Ron paled at the thought that Harry was being tortured in the house along with his usually loathsome family. Hermione shakily stood next to Ron with tears in her eyes, but not yet enough to spill down her cheeks. "We've got to do something quickly", she hissed at the Weasley men. All of whom were thinking the exact same thing. Bill and Charlie were arguing over if attacking the death eaters or apparating out to get some aurors would be the best choice.. they opted for both. Bill apparated away leaving the three of them standing there undecided on what to do, yet determined to do something.  
  
"Ron, I know you won't like what I want.. but I need you to do this for me.", Charlie said. "Um, ok.. what do you want me to do?", Ron asked with a pleading look of hopelessness in his eye. Charlie talked up a plan as ron got into the van and prepared Hermione for her task. Charlie informed them of what he was going to do and how they should co-ordinate their attack.   
  
  
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"Where is Harry Potter?", one of the masked Death Eaters growled and pulled back Vernon Dursleys hair. "I don't know!", Vernon yelled, "He should have been waiting out front as he was told to."  
"We are growing tired of waiting for the right answer!", another Death Eater screamed. The same Death Eater threw a kick at vernon, forcing the large man to double over in pain as his foot went into the soft spot between the rib cage and hip.   
"We are telling the truth!", gasped Dudley Dursley. Earning him too a kick in the side.   
"Shut the fuck up fatbody!", a female Death Eater roared at Dudley before pointing her wand at him and screeching 'Crucio!'  
Dudley rocked forward on his knees, smashing his nose on the carpeted floor of their TV room. The pain coursing through him stopped him from breathing let alone scream. He just rocked on his knees with his eyes clasped shut and his mouth open in a silent scream. The first Death Eater also unleashed a cruciatus curse at Vernon. Vernon mimiced Dudley in the silent scream. Blood began to trickle from his nose, and not because of him having hit the floor. The curse was slowly and permanently traumatising his brain.   
"He might be out the back waiting out of sight", the fourth death eater stated. He was busy reading a muggle TV guide shaking his head at the contents and with a sigh he threw it at the female death eater who threw a scalding look back at him. He moved slowly yet with the grace of someone so sure of themself. He adjusted the clasp of his mask at the back of his head and a few locks of pearl white hair could be seen with it before he reset his hood.  
"Malfoy, the Dark Lord told us specifically to bait Potter back here with his family, and not to persue him unless it was clearly indicated that he had fled.", she recited the orders delivered to her by the Dark Lord himself, Voldemort.   
Lucious Malfoy spun and stared her down. He was still one of the Inner Circle and had more clout with Voldemort than she did. "How dare you utter my name infront of these dirty mudbloods!", he roared at her. She flintched like someone had hit her with a small electric shock.   
  
  
  
Harry still in the kitchen under the table had been half listening to the conversation and half gathering what he needed out of his school gear.  
  
  
  
"You Incompetant bitch!", he continued yelling at her. "Now you know that they can not be let to live. Even with memory charms!", he was ranting nervously, "Some Aurors are capable of restoring memories back by searching for likely events or pointed words, like a name someone has never heard before."  
"I apologize for my indiscretion. Please forgive me. I was not thinking of the consequences of what i was doing.", she paused looking around her for an idea to help save her life by redeeming herself, "Shall I administer the killing curse?"  
"Yes", he said, "just pray that the Dark Lord doesn't respond the same to you."   
  
  
"NO!", Harry screamed from under the table. He wasn't as prepared as he wanted to be but it was now or never. Harry opened up his new quidditch box and unleashed the snitch and the two bludgers into the TV room. He struggled with the clasp on his trunk's section that held his second quidditch set. Having sent the bludgers into the room, pandemonium ensued. For at the same time as they heard harry scream out. Ron drove the VW van into the middle two Death Eaters guarding the front door of the house, crushing them to death between the front of the van and the door. But panic had overtaken Ron and he kept driving forward and smashed the car thru the door into the front landing of the house. The small house shook violently with the impact and dust and debris flew in every direction. Hermione had dropped out the back of the van with Charlie as it initially impacted with the door. Charlie rolled up beside his designated target and pointed his wand 'Stupify!' and his death eater target fell over. Hermione wasn't so lucky, landing badly she fell forward with the momentum of the car and slammed into the last death eater guard. Forunatly the same effect as charlie's spell the guard was slumped on the ground with a crying hermione upon him clutching her head in pain. "He's dead.", she said. "I heard his neck break as we hit the wall." At this she broke down and cried. Charlie with pangs of sympathy for her, wanted nothing more than to drop down beside her and comfort her, but pressing matters were still at hand. Charlie jumped back into the van and went up to Ron, who was still strapped into the drivers seat. He didn't see Charlie approach, as he was way too busy being sick after the sight of the two men splattered upon the windshield and door. Charlie could hear the panic in the other room and it sounded like ricochetting bullets bouncing around a enclosed room. He ran up to the door which he hurriedly open and stopped in surprise and then hastily ducked as a bludger almost took off his head. He quickly serveyed the room and saw one death eater on the floor with a large dent in the front of his face, he was still alive, barely. Two other death eaters were busy trying to stop the bludgers and weren't looking too healthy from the task of defending themselves against a physical attack from four rogue bludgers in an enclosed space. They threw spell after spell at the bludgers. Surprisingly they were very accurate too, although very uneducated in the sport of Quidditch. There were only a handful of spells that affected a bludger, they were designed to be immune to a plethora of spells so as to remain cheat and tamper proof. Charlie saw a green flash over on his far right. He quickly turned and saw a tall dark figure pointing a wand at a table in the kitchen. "what the... ", charlie mumbled to himself wondering if the table had also been attacking them. The he watched as the table was launched up and at the Death eater, who had jumped back just in time dodge the table that had not only been ineffective in harming him but also uncovered his prize.   
Malfoy started, "Harry Potter.. The Dark Lord wishes you to die." A small smile emerged upon Lucius Malfoy's lips. "And I am here deliver that wish! No silly talking this time Potter. GoodBye. Avada Ked-".  
The words failed to come out of Lucius' mouth. He stopped stunned. He tried again, but no sound came from his mouth. Something had enveloped him in a silence spell. Without the ability to command his magic he was as magically useful as a shovel. He screamed a silent roar and charged at harry, twisting his wand so as to stab Harry with it. Harry being younger and a star quidditch player had superior reactions and phyisical ability and dodged the attack easily. He again pointed his wand at Lucius and said 'Expelliarmus!' and lucius was thrown across the room, his wand landing into Harry's out stretched hand. Not one to give up easily, Lucius pulled a twelve inch dagger from the side of his boot and threw it at Harry. Harry was taken by surprise and went to throw his hands up in an attempt to block the knife. Harry waited for the pain of the knive penetrating his skin, burrowing its way through his muscles, into his arteries and veins to end up grinding against bone, but it never came. He opened his eyes astonished that he wasn't dead. He then realized what had happened and gasped. He was standing there with both his hands clapped in front of his face with the blade sandwiched between them. He picked up his wand, which he had dropped as a result of his desperate attempt to stop the knife. Sensing that his attacker had nothing left to kill i with, Harry's curiosity kicked in. He pointed his wand at Lucius Malfoy and said 'Accio mask', and the mask hiding Lucius' true identity was removed and sitting in Harry's hand. Lucius had nothing left to fight with except his fists and body. He stood up and started toward Harry but was stopped mid way by the *POP* sounds coming from all over the house. "Give up, Malfoy!", Harry said. "the Aurors are here now. You are so seriously fucked its not funny. You'll most likely face a Dementors kiss for this!" Charlie stepped into the room followed by Albus Dumbledore, headmaster of Hogwarts and Bill Weasley. Lucius did the only thing he could. He apparated away. 


	2. Simple Truths

The moment Lucius Apparated out, Mad-Eye Moody burst into the room only to watch them turn to regard him as one who was always the last person to arrive. They could see Moody's face slacken in disgust at having one of the inner circle escape.   
"I wish I could get just one of those inner circle buggers.. ", moody said forlornly. Dumbledore returned a look of sympathy to Moody. He turned to Harry and smiled. "You have done well and bravely today, Harry. I doubt some of our best Aurors could have pulled off a more daring rescue attempt", dumbledore turned to Charlie and Bill. Both blushed and looked saddened by what they ended up doing. "What are you doing here?", Harry asked Bill and Charlie. They both looked to him and saw a nervous Harry looking at them like a small lost child. "We were coming to surprise you and take you to a Quidditch match that was on in sussex.", bill replied. Harry then had a disastrous thought. "Where is Ron? Why isn't he here now? He wouldn't miss a Quidditch match for anything.", Harry's eyes started to water in panic. "Harry, Ron and Hermione were with us in the van when we were coming." "Are they ok?", Harry barked. Not waiting for an answer, Harry burst through the Weasleys and the aurors and ran out to the front of the house. He promptly fell to his knees, tears streaming down his face. Ron was lying on a stretcher beside Hermione and the Dursleys and four body bags with the dead death eaters and three other stretches for the ones beaten and battered by his Quidditch Bludgers. Medi-Wizards were treating them both for the injuries they sustained in their drive-in assault. "All because of me.. 'cause of me...", he chanted, swaying from side to side. Hermione sat up on her stretcher, awakened by Harry crying in despair.   
"Harry", she beckoned. "Harry, We're alright. Just some bumps and scrapes. Nothing that won't heal."  
Harry looked up at her, jumped up, ran over to her and hugged her and just held her there a few minutes. He was pulled away by Ron who wanted to know how he had faired against his own assailants. Harry burst with joy and enthralled them with how he subdued three death eaters by himself. Harry explained how he had thought of the Bludgers being able to smash his elbow back in the second year and knew they didn't attack people who were only spectators. Hermione was taken back by Harry's idea of using Bludgers as a formiddable weapon. Ron burst into laughter at the idea.   
"What did you do to the front of the house?", Harry queried. "The Dursleys will be furious", he added with a huge smile on his face.  
A small look of remorse flashed across Ron's face. "We did what we needed to", he said quietly. Hermione saw that Ron wasn't capable of finishing telling Harry what had happened. "Ron drove the van into the door. We expected them to jump aside. I guess switching the van from invisible to visible surprised them so much they didn't react in time." Harry sensed Ron wasn't happy with something. "I ended up killing two people. They're going to send me to azkaban for it." Ron felt like crying over the hopelessness of his situation.   
A thought occured to Harry. He stood up and ran over to Dumbledore.   
"Sir, how did they find us? I thought that the familius charm protected us from them?", Harry enquired.   
"I'm not sure how they did it, Harry." Albus Dumbledore responded.   
"Professor, I felt the barrier on our way in. Its different somehow.", Bill Weasley added.  
"Could you describe how different?", Albus asked.  
"I could feel the power of the spell still there, but it was like the reason for it to be there was gone.", Bill replied.  
"Hmm. Interesting.", was all that Dumbledore said.  
A witch familiar to Harry jogged over. It had been some time since he had last seen her.   
"Mr Moody, the containment team say that the familius is missing the family component.", she said.  
"Hmm, that would explain why it feels like there was something missing. Without the family component the spell is just a waste of magical energy.", Bill mused.  
"Ah Mrs Figg, how nice to see you again.", Dumbledore said with a smile to the witch.   
"Albus, it is good to see you again after all these years.", she said.  
"Harry, you remember Mrs Figg? She used to be a babysitter for the Dursleys. Arrabella Figg.", Dumbledore said to Harry.   
"You're a witch!?", Harry blurted.  
"Not just any witch, Harry. She's second in command for the Ministry Safehouses."  
Harry's mind drifted away from the conversation at hand. His surprise turning into curiosity and then anger as he realized that Mrs Figg had never told him she was a witch.   
"All those years growing up with the dursleys, whenever i was sent here you were just as nasty and terrible to me as they were."  
"And for that I am truly sorry. I never wished to decieve you. But if i had showed you I was a witch or any form of favortism they would have thought me as being soft on you and found someone else who wouldn't have been able to care for you as I was capable of."   
"Fat lot of good you did here then. It's just fortunate that the Dursleys aren't dead or worse", Harry said harshly before walking out of the room before anyone could say any more. Dumbledore sighed as he watched Harry storm away. Bill and Charlie followed Harry out.  
"He keeps finding out people arn't what they always portray themselves to be", Mrs Figg added.  
"I just wish there was a way to include him in our struggle", Dumbledore said, "but I don't want to put him into unnecessary danger."  
"He seems quite capable of putting himself into enough danger as it is", Moody quipped.  
"What can we do?", Mrs Figg queried.  
"I 'spose we could start his training instead of after his seventh year", Moody said.  
"Training? training in what exactly?", Mrs Figg asked looking rather prepared to throw daggers at Alastor Moody.  
"His Auror training of course!", stated defensively.  
"What? He's only fifteen! He hasn't even done any of his O.W.L.s yet", She blurted at him.  
"So he should be unarmed for the next time, eh?", Moody spat back.  
"The best protection we can give him is knowledge and the ability to handle himself in all situations", Albus Dumbledore said to both of them with a smile.  
"I shall arrange some people to teach him this summer before he returns to hogwarts", Alastor said before he walked out of the front of the house and Apparated away.  
"I shall insist on being present on any training he goes through", Arabella Figg promptly stated before also walking outside to Apparate home.  
"I wonder if the two of them can overcome their past to actually help Harry", Albus mused to himself.  
  
  
  
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"YOU DID WHAT?", Mrs Molly Weasley screamed at Bill and Charlie. Her husband Arthur Weasley sat in his chair fuming over having found out about the attack on Harry's previously well hidden home.   
"We did what we had to do. We also believe that if we hadn't acted when we did that Harry would be dead and so would his cousins, the Dursleys", Charlie answered.  
"Did you think about the consequences of what you were planning on doing before you did it?", Molly lectured them.  
"Yes, and we didn't know it would have turned out like it did. We only knew what would have happened if we didn't react", Bill replied.  
"Ron is under a heavy potion to make him sleep and not dream about the horror of what he did today. I can't guess at how Hermione's parents are at having received a daughter home who has been responsible for someone dying", Arthur added somberly.  
"It seems pointless for us to fight over the past. We need to focus on the future and what dark times are coming now. Voldemort did not wait long before he struck out at Harry", Arthur said to all in the room.   
"Then we should all be careful, Its not only on Harry himself that voldemort can strike to hurt Harry", Bill added to his father's dire words.  
The room quietened sharply in responce to the fact that no one wanted to carry on this conversation.  
  
  
  
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"Those of you present here have been chosen to teach select students in some questionable ways", Albus Dumbledore began, "Your role here is to teach primarily Harry Potter how to defend himself from attacks physical, magical and mental. You will also be teaching some of his friends from the Hogwarts School of Wizardry and Witchcraft, which I am headmaster of, and to also provide extra protection to various people involved in Harry's life. I must make one thing clear. In your teachings, make sure Harry and those who are being taught beside him are aware that you are teaching them to be independant of us in times of great need."  
"Also upon the end of the training they will be issued wizarding licences to perform underage magic away from Hogwarts"  
"Will they be required to demonstrate their new skills in simulations?", asked a large black man.  
"Yes Mr Brooks, they will be. I don't think they will like it though", said Albus.  
"It can't be helped", Arrabella Figg added.  
"When do we start the training?", one of the professors asked.  
"In two days, Professor McGonnagal", Albus said to the professor.  
"So soon after the unfortunate tragedy in Little Whinging?", McGonnagal asked.  
"I would have it sooner, but for having to wait for the location to be secured", Albus stated.  
"Now i should suggest you all get some rest and be prepared for travelling on a chartered KnightBus tomorrow night", Albus informed the room, "We have firstly made it so you can not Apparate into the facility."  
The look of disgust from all in the room was apparant as they had all disliked travelling on the KnightBus.   
"Where is this facility? Can we know that much?", Professor McGonnagal asked Albus.  
"I guess that knowledge will be fairly safe, considering it will be very obvious when we get there."  
The room all looked upon Albus Dumbledore with anxious eyes. Albus could feel all the eyes in the room penetrating his skin. After a period of suspence Albus smiled and stood up. He reached the door and opened it, turning to face back to the table with his captive audience, he spoke.  
"Hereford. Its a muggle facility in hereford." 


End file.
